Post by Canningmama on Oct 30, 2011 7:14:54 GMT -5

Well, upon feeding this morning, Ange said she has lots of stringy goo coming out her rear and her milk is orange. She's not due till Dec. 5!!! I knew she might come early, but is this too early? We don't even have the calf pen built yet! Dude!! Ok, so what do we need to know? Anyone wanna give me their cell phone number so I can call when I'm panicking?? Kelly? Rosalind? Anyone?? Of course, she started bagging up like 5 days ago....also she had some stringy stuff on her tail like 3 days ago too, but Ange and I both decided it was weird poo. well, guess not.

Post by Canningmama on Oct 30, 2011 7:29:20 GMT -5

not only that, but we haven't been feeding her for calving just yet, and i think the minerals i've been giving were supposed to be stopped a few weeks prior to calving. so what does that mean for us/milk and calf?

Post by 39chicks1cow on Oct 30, 2011 7:29:34 GMT -5

Post pics of her pins. That will prompt experts to chime in. I hope all is well. My gal is goobing up pretty heavily this week. She isn't due until Dec 14. My Buttercup looked like her pins were softening this morning. Freaked me too. Good luck, and keep us posted! This will be the second calf born here- but different cow mama. Still unnerving! ARRGH!

Post by Canningmama on Oct 30, 2011 7:30:51 GMT -5

Post by Guest on Oct 30, 2011 7:43:52 GMT -5

Pins and ligaments are tight, no slab siding, and her bag, while full, is not huge, but it is pretty even now. Appetite and poo normal. But she's got colostrum. I haven't been too worried about the occasional goo, but isn't colostrum produceds at least within a few days of calving?

We were TOLD she was due in Dec. I've said from the beginning that really, we have NO IDEA. I have a feeling she's right on schedule. Thanks for any help! I'm sure Jenny'll get some pics when she checks her after breakfast.

Post by Liz on Oct 30, 2011 9:02:00 GMT -5

Here is a pic of Louise's pins the morning of the day she calved (10pm). Goo is normal, some produce quite a lot in the weeks before calving. If she has tons of really thick ropey goo I would get that pen ready, she may calve in 2-3 weeks instead of 5 (can go 2 weeks before or after due date).Good luck!

Post by Canningmama on Oct 30, 2011 14:09:08 GMT -5

Well, the pen is built, and I think Daisy is still a ways away. I hope it's still a couple weeks away if she's really actually due Dec. 5th. Her pins still look completely normal. Ange squeezed out orangish milk (colostrum I'm assuming), but she is not dripping yet. She's still acting pretty darn normal. If anything, she's calmer than normal, but maybe she's just having a lazy weekend. Anywho, we're more ready now. Hey by the way, when folks feed molasses water, how much molasses do I need to have on hand? Do you just buy it from the grocery store or is there another source for it? I know of a place I can buy a quart for less than $3, so I could have several quarts on hand (this is people grade molasses! )

Post by Guest on Oct 31, 2011 8:39:53 GMT -5

No, we're not milking. Twice, just since that one quarter got all funky and the teat filled up, I gave it a squeeze, just to see what the milk looked like (with the staph, I was concerned about mastitis. ) That's the only way I know what it looked like! I do know they need to seal, but she's been dripping all along periodically (such as after coming off grass).

The teats get a waxy appearance pre-birth too, right? Well, I know horses do. She looked good this morning. The udder is full (I didn't extract any milk this morning, just felt her up!) and she has goo all over her tail. But other than that, she looks normal, and acted normal.

Post by rosalind on Oct 31, 2011 9:09:46 GMT -5

The teats can get waxy within hours of birth, I like it as an indicator, but like everything else in life, not 100% of cows get that!

Okay, as far as "GOO"... A cow can have that weeks before calving. And I mean a lot. Goop everywhere, in big long, thick clear strings. Everywhere. So that's not going to tell you much.

For colostrum, like Liz said, avoid the temptation to squeeze.

You can get a teat sealant which they say helps prevent mastitis very well. Seals the teat so nothing is getting in. When a cow drips milk, it's an opening for the bacteria to squirm its way in. But I don't know much more about actually sealing the teats than that.

As far as an early calving date, I would definitely keep an eye on the cow. Not her first calf, so the actual calving part you can hope will go smooth. But with her udder making up funny already, she could easily be less than 30 days from calving. I mean, you could say Dec. 5, minus 5 days for a Jersey so Nov 30, minus up to 2 weeks early if she calved early... that's not very far away. Not to mention, if there was a previous breeding date (yay, your cow is fertile! LOL)

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